Seize the Power Why You Should Pay Attention to the LAFF Symposium this Weekend
This weekend the Los Angeles Film Festival is hosting a truly wonderful event which I am proud to have developed in collaboration with LAFF and Film Independent (with strong push and support from Ted Hope
Jon Reiss TOTBO Tip of the Day 35 – A Meta Stream of Tips
Today’s tip will be a meta tip. If you go to Twitter and search #totbo you will see the stream of tips, ideas, comments, suggestions etc from everyone who was engaged in the Totbo NY Workshop in the room in NYC or who virtually participated in distant lands! Kudos to all the participants at the […]
TOTBO Tip of the Day 34 When Booking Your Film: Make the Call
When calling the theater, ask for the person in charge of programming. These bookers are generally very nice people who love film. Why else would they be involved with small theaters that make no money? And remember, it is important to call first before sending an e-mail. An e-mail cannot express your passion, nor will […]
TOTBO Tip of the Day 33 When Booking Your Film: Do Your Research
Of course you have done your organizational research, but assuming you are still going to book some conventional theaters the first step is: Research. Most information you need to book your film is readily available online. There are already lists of theaters that book independent films available online. My distribution and marketing tools site: ultimatefilmguides.com […]
TOTBO Tip of the Day 32 Use Organizational Partners
If you have laid the groundwork with organizational partners, you can have them organize many of your screenings what Lisa Smithline calls DIFY – or Do It For You. This is one of the many added benefits of starting your distribution and marketing groundwork from the beginning. Even if they don’t do the actual screening […]
TOTBO Tip of the Day 31 Embrace Live Event/Theatrical
This week’s tips concern the re-born “theatrical” movement in the US and around the world for independent film. I’m a firm believer that film should be screened in front of live audiences – which is one form of our millennia old tradition of telling stories in a communal environment – usually in the dark (in […]
TOTBO Tip of the Day 30 Request to Keep Assets that Others Create for Your Film
Make sure you get all of the elements for each stage of the delivery process, whether it is the files for your authored DVD or if it is a subtitled version of you film that a foreign film festival created or if it the files for the closed captioning of your film. I had a […]
Proper Prior Planning Prevents Perplexing Problems
Proper Prior Planning Prevents Perplexing Problems My thoughts on educating filmmakers about distribution and marketing. Proper Prior Planning Prevent Perplexing Problems By Jon Reiss Over the last several months an argument has arisen within the independent film community as to how much (and whether) filmmakers should focus on the distribution and marketing of their films. […]
TOTBO Tip of the Day 29 Full Frame Video Delivery Still Exists
Even though the world is moving to HD and its 16:9 aspect ratio as a standard, some television and VOD contracts require a full frame 4×3 version. In smaller deals you can often push your way out of this requirement, but on some bigger sales with bigger companies –just may not take your title if […]
TOTBO Tip of the Day 28 For Docs: Do Your International Cut Down When You Are Cutting Your Film
Documentaries usually need a 52-54 minute cut down of their film to sell to foreign television. I waited a year before doing my cut down for Bomb It, which was way too long. While it did provide me perspective and made it easier for me to slash and burn my film, I essentially had to […]